Cell-Phone Bill Watch: Introducing the $350 Early Termination Fee

For some smartphones, the fee for jumping ship and canceling your service plan early is now a whopping $350.

Verizon Wireless, which used to charge a $175 at most for what’s known as an ETF (early termination fee), doubled the fee that’s listed in the fine print of many new contracts. Per LA Times’ David Lazarus:

The in-your-face fee applies to BlackBerrys, the much-touted new Droid phones and other smart phones capable of sending and receiving text messages and e-mails as well as accessing the Internet.